I-94 BAR TOP TENS

Guitarist/vocalist with Canadian bands BUM and Budokan. Contributor at the I-94 Bar and for Ugly Things magazine.

Let’s see, saw a few great rock ‘n’ roll shows this year, bought lots of music (most of it, unfortunately, old), honeymooned in Japan (bootleg heaven). So, some highlights.

Albums (in no particular order):

Supersnazz-Get Down (Meerkat)
I remember playing with these Japanese heroes, oh, 14 years ago (and subbing for them at Garage Shock ’93) and being blown away. They still got it. Awesome songs with big hooks, played with reckless abandon.

BellRays-Hard, Sweet and Sticky (Anodyne)
Not quite as solid as Have a Little Faith, but still pretty fine.

Hellacopters-Head Off (Psychout)
Pleasantly surprised by how good this is, maybe bowing out with a covers album was the charm. Now I gotta find out who originally did ‘Midnight Angels’.

Carlene Carter-Stronger (Yep Roc)
After some years in the wilderness Carlene is back with a great set of country-tinged pop songs…and the voice sounds as pure as ever. 

Baseball Project-Vol. 1: Frozen Ropes and Dying Quails (Yep Roc)
Hmm, good year for Yep Roc. Scott McCaughey (Young Fresh Fellows/Minus Five) and Steve Wynn (Dream Syndicate) team up to record an album’s worth of songs about baseball. You don’t have to love the game ‘cos the storytelling’s outstanding and the tunes are top-notch. 

Teenage Head-Teenage Head w/ Marky Ramone (Sonic Unyon)
Canadian punk vets recruit one of the best drummers ever to re-record their classics. As good as you would hope. Sadly, lead singer Frankie Venom just recently succumbed to cancer. RIP Frankie.

New York Dolls-Live at the Fillmore East (Sony)
This album is too short.

Dirtbombs-We Have You Surrounded (In the Red)
This one jumps all over the stylistic map and almost everything hits. 

Gary Louris-Vagabonds (Rykodisc)
Former Jayhawks frontman is one of the best songwriters (in the truest sense of the word) around.

Black Crowes-Warpaint (Silver Arrow)
Oops, I’m guessing this isn’t a very cool choice. Go ahead, take your shots.

Reissues, Archival releases, etc.:

Iggy Pop-Where the Faces Shine Vol. 2 (Easy Action)
Gotta agree with the Barman on this one.

 Sonic’s Rendezvous Band-The Second Chance (Easy Action)
Ditto.

Detroit Cobras-Original Recordings: Singles and Unreleased 1995-1997 (Munster)
Nice to have the early stuff plus some other gems all in one easy package.

Replacements-Reissues (Twin-Tone/Sire)
Yep, all of them. Boy, do I ever miss these guys.

Byrds-Live at Royal Albert Hall 1971 (Sundazed)
That Clarence White sure could pick.

Dennis Wilson-Pacific Ocean Blue (Columbia)
Beautiful.

Clash-Live at Shea Stadium (Epic)
Thought this might suffer from the absence of Topper on drums but Terry Chimes actually acquits himself admirably.

Live Shows:

New York Dolls-Plaza, Vancouver.
Seen the reformed line-up three times now and they really have become a super-rockin’ machine, whatever that might mean.

Dirtbombs-Sugar, Victoria.
Pros that they are, the Dirtbombs took a sparse, Sunday night crowd and got them to MOVE. Even the hipsters were dancing.

Neil Young-GM Place, Vancouver.
You want guitars? Oh, okay.

And, finally:

Best Bar-Poor Cow, Shimatikazawa (sp.?), Tokyo.
Fifi, formerly of Teengenerate and now of Firestarter, runs a joint that is more like a clubhouse or the bedroom of the coolest teenager in the world. Impeccable record collection, if you care about that stuff, and good beer. Why don’t we have a place like this in my town? Oh yeah, because we’re lame.

Dave Laing responds meekly to being told he looks like an Oakridge Boy by wise-ass young country gun Justin Townes Earle

Black Diamond Heavies – live & ‘A Touch of Someone Else’s Class’ CD
Wild, primal and LOUD R&B, like Ray Charles if he was trying to impress The Stooges. Great cover of Nutbush City Limits, and some killer originals. A perfect party record and an animalistic live band.  If we’re lucky they may have worked up their version of Bob Seger’s ‘Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man’ by the time they reach our shores in December. Don’t miss them!
 
Alejandro Escovedo  - ‘Real Animal’ CD
Not his best bunch of tunes, but his hardest sounding record. Like his beloved Lou, Mott and Stones, this guy is as adept with the quiet stuff as the loud stuff, and he’s got the songs and depth of soul to match his heroes.

Pierced Arrows live & ‘Straight To The Heart’ CD
Dead Moon is dead, long live the Pierced Arrows! Fred Cole is the sound and spirit of rock’n'roll personified, and his guitar sound is still the smokin’est ever.

Felice Bros live & ‘Felice Brothers’ cd
At first glance too much like The Band, but these guys have a completely unique spirit, great humor and great tunes to boot.

Chris Wilson – ‘All the Action’
Groovies singer returns with only second solo record in 20 something years. Album is patchy song-wise, but this opener, sort of an update/answer song to  ’Shake Some Action’, is an absolute ripper.

Roky Erickson & The Explosives live at Threadgill’s
Roky & co play of scorching full length set, in a beer garden type setting, out front of a legendary restaurant in Austin. Billy Gibbons appears on stage for last couple of tunes. How can you not love SXSW when it keeps throwing up things like this? For all the industry wankery, there is still a strong element that is all about the music,,,

Magic Christian live at SXSW
Awesome live shows around Austin during sxsw. Now where the fuck is that second album guys?

Buffalo Killers ‘Let I Ride’ /Hacienda ‘Loud Is The Night’
These two, together with the Black Diamond Heavies, make for a trio of killer albums released by Alive and produced by Dan of the Black Keys. Buffalo Killers sound like Cream playing Big Star, Hacienda are young Mexican guys from San Antonio with Beatles/Beach Boys fixation. Great songs and great sounds abound on both these albums.

Charlie Pickett &… ‘Barband Americanus’
Best single-artist reissue of the year. Killer rock’n'roll from Miami, for fans of the Dream Syndicate, Gun Club and Flamin’ Groovies.

‘Thank You Friends: The Ardent Records Story’
Best multi-artist resissue/comp of the year. Outlines the context in which Big Star developed beautifully. The rare and unreleased stuff from Big Star and contemporaries on disc 2 is awesome.

Justin Townes Earle live and ‘ The Good Life’ CD
Steve Earle’s son has one foot in the gritty singer -songwriter stuff of his dad and his namesake Townes Van Zandt, and one foot in old time country Hank Williams-style. A great singer and captivating performer – by the time you read this you’ve probably missed his first Australian tour.

Hitmen ‘Death by the Gun’
I missed their live shows this year, but this great version of Masuak’s old and unreleased Birdman gem, which will appear on cd in ‘09, absolutely burns.
  
Eddy Current Suppression Ring ‘Primary Colours’
Still haven’t seen them live (no I don’t get out much anymore) but I’m finally convinced.

The Visitors reform
… and I fucking missed it !!

Johnny Casino & the Secrets ‘I Am Who I Am Not Who You Want Me To Be’
Great songs, great playing, and the boy has become a great singer. Soulful journeyman-type rock’n'roll that reminds me of Scott Kempner’s fab first solo album from the early 90’s.

Graeme Day & the Gaolers ‘Triple Distilled’ (Damaged Goods)
Prisoners mainman outdoes himself and how. Furious energy, great tunes, and ‘Glad I’m Not Young’ could well be my personal anthem of the year (and yours too!).

HOLD THE PRESSES!
Apparently an advance release of the second Magic Christian album ‘Evolver’ is available for purchase here www.cahootsgraffix.com . My likely album of the year will be in hands in a week or so I’m hoping. Check Cyril Jordan’s killer new licks on the bands myspace site!!